Song Xiu Jun was amused by him and shared a rabbit leg with him.
"You're a decent Educated Youth. If you ever need anything in the Production Team, just look for your Anzi Ge. I've got your back," Yan Xiang'an said, his words muffled as he tasted the exceptionally flavorful roasted rabbit for the first time.
In the past, he'd occasionally sneak some of his mother's seasonings up the mountain to satisfy his cravings, but the taste was nowhere near as good as today's.
"What seasonings did you use? How does it taste so good?"
"I brought them from my hometown. I'm not really sure."
Actually, it was cumin and chili powder.
Song Xiu Jun gave him a roasted sweet potato as well. After eating and drinking his fill, Yan Xiang'an knew exactly what to do and began helping clean up—extinguishing the fire, dismantling the makeshift stove, and burying any traces of their cooking.
"Is the Brigade leader home in the evening? I'd like to pay him a visit."
Yan Xiang'an widened his eyes: "Hey, little sister, didn't we agree to stick together in this? Are you planning to report me for skipping work today?"
Song Xiu Jun rolled her eyes: "I need to ask the Brigade leader for a favor."
After work ended in the evening, the veteran Educated Youth exchanged for a small piece of meat—about the size of a child's fist—which was divided equally among everyone. During dinner, each person received one portion.
Song Xiu Jun cut a piece of cured meat to add to the meal: "Since I'm new here, I'll likely trouble everyone often in the future."
Zhang Ruolan also brought out salted fish. Seeing this, the newly arrived male Educated Youth each contributed some food to enrich the welcome dinner.
Wang Guifang curled her lip: "Look at you showing off, always trying to steal the spotlight." Her circumstances were poor; she had no money and couldn't contribute anything. She had originally hoped to get a taste of meat from the veteran Educated Youth, but Song Xiu Jun had taken the lead and embarrassed her.
For this meal, the veteran Educated Youth didn't let the newcomers lift a finger. It had been a long time since they'd had meat, and with such a lavish dinner tonight, they were even willing to take care of the dishwashing afterward.
Before the meal began, everyone introduced themselves—sharing their names, ages, and hometowns.
Then, they eagerly picked up their chopsticks, and in the blink of an eye, the dishes were cleared. Even the vegetables tonight were infused with the aroma of meat.
Finally, they used coarse cornbread to soak up the remaining broth, leaving the plates as clean as if they'd been washed.
Song Xiu Jun had eaten quite full at noon, so she held back during dinner. After washing the dishes, she decided to go out for a walk.
"Xiu Jun, where are you going?" Zhang Ruolan chased after her and asked.
"Just taking a stroll," Song Xiu Jun paused, then decided to be honest, "and by the way asking the Brigade leader about something.""
Seeing that she had business to attend to, Zhang Ruolan felt it would be impolite to follow, so she only advised: "Then go and come back early. It's not safe for a girl to walk around the village after dark."
"I know," Song Xiu Jun nodded.
After walking some distance, she took a pack of cigarettes and a pack of brown sugar from her space.
The Brigade leader's family had just finished dinner, and they were still clearing the dishes from the table in the yard.
"New Educated Youth? I'm the Brigade leader's wife, Lin Sulan. Are you looking for my Old Yan?"
The woman who opened the door for her was broad-shouldered and stout, appearing quite intimidating. Her voice was loud and brisk, but her smile was warm and friendly.
"Aunt Lin, I'm Song Xiu Jun. I need to ask the Brigade leader about something. Is he available now?"
Lin Sulan warmly ushered her in: "Available, available! Old man, an Educated Youth is here to see you!"
But the person who emerged from the room was Yan Xiang'an: "Well, you actually came. You're not carrying gifts in that basket, are you? My dad doesn't accept bribes—he's a man of integrity." His tone carried a hint of sarcasm.
Lin Sulan frowned and raised her foot to kick her youngest son: "Get out of my sight! If you're so bored, go fetch water for our guest. How dare you gossip about your father!"
"Aunt Lin, please don't trouble yourself."
In the main room, lit by an oil lamp, the Brigade leader was sitting on the kang rolling tobacco: "What brings you here?"
"Uncle Brigade leader, I wanted to ask if we Educated Youth can build houses in the brigade?"
The Brigade leader was taken aback, his face stern: "Don't you want to stay at the Educated Youth Spot? Have you had conflicts with others?"
"Not yet. I just want to live alone. I have a bad temper and like to fight. Living by myself would cause less trouble," Song Xiu Jun said this righteously, without any of the shyness expected of a young woman.
The Brigade leader's gaze unconsciously fell on the gauze on her head: "That injury of yours?"
"My stepsister secretly signed me up for the rural program, so I had a fight with her before leaving," Song Xiu Jun explained calmly.
The Brigade leader's heart sank, immediately feeling this young Educated Youth was a hot potato. After just a few sentences, her temperament seemed even more unruly than his youngest son's.
Yan Xiang'an and Lin Sulan also looked at her in surprise.
The original owner's appearance was that of a good girl – round almond eyes, a rounded oval face, and standing just 160cm tall. No matter how you looked at her, she didn't seem aggressive.
"If you build a house in the brigade, when you return to the city later, the brigade won't compensate you for it. It will directly belong to the Production Team," the Brigade leader advised.
"That's fine, I'm not short of money for building a house," she said, unafraid of showing off her wealth since there were only three people in the room.
According to functional calculations, the Brigade leader's family were the most honest cadres in the entire Zhengyang Commune.
Besides the Brigade leader's wife Lin Sulan, who was the brigade's women's director, all other Yan family members were ordinary brigade members.
Seeing the Brigade leader still considering, Song Xiu Jun directly took out the items from her basket.
The Brigade leader said somewhat angrily: "Take everything back."
"This isn't a bribe. I'm giving these to Anzi Ge and Aunt Lin. One shouldn't visit elders empty-handed," Song Xiu Jun said shamelessly.
Yan Xiang'an raised his eyebrows – when had they become so familiar?
"Then you've given to the wrong person. I don't smoke. If I accept these, I can only offer them to my father," he said meaningfully with a smile.
"Give them to whoever you want. They're yours anyway, to thank you for letting me ride the ox cart yesterday."
Yan Xiang'an happily tucked them into his arms: "That's great! Daqianmen cigarettes – good stuff!"
Yan Weiguo was so angry with his youngest son that his face turned red. He reached out to grab something to hit him with, but Yan Xiang'an predicted his father's move and quickly slipped out of the main room.
"Song Zhiqing, I'll approve a plot for you to build a house. But living alone isn't as safe as staying at the Educated Youth Spot. Although I'm the Brigade leader, I can't keep watch over everyone in the brigade all the time."
The atmosphere in Xianghong Brigade was relatively good. With him keeping pressure, the local hooligans didn't dare harass the Educated Youth. He'd heard gossip from other brigades about all sorts of messy incidents.
But there was always a chance something could happen.
"Don't worry, Brigade leader. I'm not someone to be trifled with. If anyone has ill intentions, it's not certain who would come out worse," Song Xiu Jun stated confidently. She couldn't possibly suffer for the sake of some trash, could she?
She was here to retire!
"There's an empty plot next to the Educated Youth Spot. It's enough to build a small room," Yan Weiguo said after thinking for a moment.
"That would work. I live alone, so just a small kang, one kitchen, and an outhouse would be enough. I'd also like a small courtyard with a vegetable patch," Song Xiu Jun outlined her living plans. If she continued with collective living, there would be no way to cook for herself privately.
The grain distributed by the Production Team was all coarse grains, but she longed to eat the rice and fine flour from her space.
"Give me fifty yuan, and I'll find help to build it for you. We'll settle the difference later. The autumn harvest is coming soon, so we should finish before that."
Hearing this, Song Xiu Jun promptly counted out one hundred yuan: "Uncle Brigade Leader, can we get tiles and blue bricks? I don't want a thatched roof. A kang made with good bricks would be sturdier. Please build the courtyard walls higher. I won't have time to prepare meals for the uncles helping, so they'll have to eat at home."
Yan Weiguo: "…" Are all city girls this reckless? Had his earlier advice been completely wasted?
"Oh, and Uncle Brigade Leader, could I avoid fieldwork? I'll just cut pigweed instead. I'm not cut out for farm labor."
The Brigade Leader took a deep breath. This girl really had some nerve.
"No! You Educated Youth came here for rural labor, not for a life of ease. How can you think of avoiding work? That's not right, and I must criticize you for it. Besides, the team's grain requires work points to exchange. Without work points, how will you fill your stomach later?"
Song Xiu Jun rubbed her nose: "My family will send me money and ration coupons. I won't go hungry."